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‘Rubicon’ Review Revue

By

WSJ Staff

Jul 31, 2010 10:00 am ET

“Rubicon,” which premieres Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET, is AMC’s third original drama series, following the well-reviewed “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad.” Taking a cue from its predecessors, the series is classy-looking and pensive, if slower-burning.

James Badge Dale (“The Pacific”) stars as Will Travers, an intelligence agent for the fictional American Policy Institute (API). Having lost his wife and child in 9/11, he’s immersed himself in a world of spies and secret codes, but like his colleagues — played by Dallas Robert, Christopher Evan Welch, and Lauren Hodges — he’s a little burned out. His life shifts, however, when some close to him passes away under mysterious circumstances and he’s given new insight into a possible larger government conspiracy.

Based on such 70s paranoia thrillers as “The Parallax View” and “Three Days of the Condor,” “Rubicon” is the anti-”24″ and starts off slowly — too slowly for some critics. Here’s a look at what they are saying.